Tech Programs in Johnstown

By Kevin Litwin on April 28, 2011 at 6:30 pm EST
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Fulton-Montgomery Community College will soon have a smart new neighbor.

Technical School

BOCES (Board of Cooperative Educational Services) plans to open a technical high school adjacent to the community college‚ on land the college owns. The high school-college campus setting in Johnstown will be the first of its kind in all of New York.

“This will allow many students to begin certain technical programs at the high school level and then smoothly transfer into some of our programs here at the college‚” says Barry Weinberg‚ president of Fulton-Montgomery Community College. “It is very efficient having the campuses co-located‚ and BOCES has signed a 30-year agreement to remain here.”

Officials broke ground on the $25 million building complex in April 2005.

Higher Education

Besides welcoming the technical high school to its site‚ FMCC has been responsive to community needs in many other ways over the years.

Perhaps the most important contribution is that it remains the sole institution of higher education in Fulton and Montgomery counties.

“First of all‚ FMCC is here for students who want to initially attend a community college instead of going away to a residential institution‚” Weinberg says.

“In that aspect‚ our role is to prepare many students for eventual transfer to a four-year university. But we are also here to prepare other students for technical and vocational careers that are high-tech and meet the needs of the local workforce.”

Training Programs

In the technical career field‚ Weinberg says the nursing training program at Fulton-Montgomery is among the best in the state‚ and the community college is working with Clarkson University to develop an alternative energy program.

FMCC has also recently introduced an electrical engineering tech program and a new radiation technician program that involves working with the hospitals in both counties.

“Our community has invested $14 million in recent years for renovations‚ expansions and equipment upgrades‚ and FMCC now offers 55 academic programs‚” Weinberg says. “There are approximately 2‚000 students enrolled in credit classes‚ and we also offer child-care service to our students.”

Weinberg says FMCC is meeting the educational and employment needs of the two counties‚ but also points out that the college also is a natural magnet for cultural opportunities.

“FMCC schedules many lectures‚ theater productions and art gallery showings during each school year‚” he says. “We also offer Division III junior college intercollegiate athletics‚ and our teams are of national quality.

“Many of them [the teams] have been ranked in the top five in the country over the last few years. There are just so many reasons why a student would be wise to attend Fulton-Montgomery Community College.”

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